Top loading, vertical axis washing machines constitute the majority of laundry machines in the U.S., but tend to be relatively inefficient in their use of water and energy, and hard on the clothes they launder. In Europe, and in professional laundries, horizontal axis washers tend to be more popular. Horizontal axis washers use less water and energy, are more gentle, and get clothes cleaner. However, most horizontal axis machines are front-loading, requiring the user to bend over to load and unload the clothes. For many users, this disadvantage outweighs the significant benefits. There have been some prior attempts to design a top loading horizontal-axis washer, but the problems involved in opening a laundry machine outermost lid, a drum door, and in some cases an intermediate cover, have resulted in difficulties and inconvenience.
Consequently, there remains a long felt need to provide an improved laundry machine door assembly that provides all the benefits of ease of loading and simple operation of vertical axis washing machines, but also provides the superior performance and economy of horizontal axis machines. Those of skill in the art will appreciate the present invention which addresses the above problems, and other significant problems the solutions to which are discussed hereinafter.